Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
Salt marshes are rich in biodiversity, serving as shelter for young wildlife such as lobster and salmon, and provide waterfowl and other birds with abundant habitat. This critical habitat also helps form a natural barrier that slows wave action and reduces storm surges that can result in floods, impacting the waterfowl, wildlife, and people who call these places home.
The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) and Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) are working together to conserve one of the largest remaining tracts of intact Prairie grasslands and wetlands in Canada. McIntyre Ranch, located south of Lethbridge, will be conserved through an agreement (conservation easement) between the landowners and the two organizations. This 130-year-old ranch is one of the largest private landholdings in Canada, and spans over 22,000 hectares — an area more than a quarter the size of Calgary.
Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) is pleased to welcome six new members to its board of directors. Supporting the organization’s mission to conserve and restore wetlands and other natural areas, these directors bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise to help DUC advance sustainability, biodiversity and climate resiliency and achieve its vision of healthy wetlands and clean water for waterfowl, wildlife and people.
As one of the largest and longest-standing conservation organizations in North America that employs more than 400 employees across Canada, this award recognizes DUC’s focus on balancing the needs of its employees with the demands of achieving its vision of healthy wetlands and clean water for waterfowl, wildlife and people.
As the financial costs of climate change climb, experts and governments are quickly coming to the consensus that man-made structures won't be enough to protect coastal communities. For biologist Dan Stewart, the answer is obvious, and on a recent overcast day, he was looking at it: from the edge of the Boundary Bay dike, a more than 200 metre-thick band of salt marsh reached out to the sea.
Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) applauds the Manitoba Government's decision in designating Moswa Meadows and Fish Lake Fen as Provincially Significant Peatlands—the first of their kind in the province. Manitoba is home to 17 per cent of Canadian peatlands, with these ecologically valuable areas covering over one third of the province's landmass. Peatlands offer valuable environmental and social benefits, including water management and filtration, remarkable carbon storage capacity, and habitat for wildlife.
Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) is proud to announce that it has recently acquired six properties, totaling more than 80 hectares of wetlands in the regional county municipality of Pontiac. Located in the municipalities of Isle-aux-Allumettes and Île-du-Grand-Calumet in the Outaouais region, the various properties have great ecological value, particularly because of their strategic location on the periphery of the Ottawa River, a high-priority area for the conservation of waterfowl and their habitats.
When it comes to conservation education, there’s no better setting than outdoors in nature. Thanks to an exciting new partnership between Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) and Dr. Martin LeBoldus Catholic High School, hundreds of Regina students will have the chance to do just that. DUC and Regina Catholic Schools are pleased to announce the launch of the Regina Wetland Centre of Excellence (WCE), the 27th WCE in Canada and only the second in Saskatchewan. This innovative program will help Regina students become conservation leaders and environmental stewards through hands-on and experiential wetland education.
Over the past year, headlines about the environment have been bleak. Floods, droughts and fires have hit our fellow Canadians hard. But the impacts of climate change should not make us feel powerless. Wetlands are a formidable force of nature that has our back. In 2022, they can be Canada’s good news story. When you look at the ways in which people and communities are working together to conserve wetlands across the country, the good news flows like…well, water. As nations around the globe prepare to mark World Wetlands Day on February 2, Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) is celebrating some important wins here at home that are making life better for wildlife, people and communities.
With global warming, the B.C. government is looking for ways to protect watersheds. On Tuesday, the province released its Watershed Security Strategy, which includes advice from Ducks Unlimited Canada, and the conservation group calls it an important step. The discussion paper explores key issues including climate change, wildlife habitats, sources of drinking water, as well as community and economic stability. Sarah Nathan, Ducks Unlimited Canada’s manager of provincial operations for B.C., was on hand for the event. She joined George Heyman, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, at a virtual announcement to discuss the critical role wetlands play in the health and security of watersheds. Referencing the gamut of floods, droughts, wildfires and debris flows that devastated the province this past year, Nathan stressed that protecting and bolstering wetlands is a must.
